Chapter 49: What a Small World

With Wang Anguo's order, the young police officer naturally did not dare to delay and immediately unlocked the handcuffs on Li Yi's wrists.

At the same time, the young man couldn't help saying, "You're something else. Since you know Captain Wang, why didn't you say so earlier!"

Li Yi smiled and said, "I was just afraid of causing trouble for him!"

"Are you and Captain Wang relatives? I heard him call you brother!"

"Not relatives, but our relationship is indeed very good!"

...

The two chatted as they walked, and soon arrived at Wang Anguo's office.

After pouring Li Yi a cup of water, the young man left, and soon Li Yi was the only one left in the office!

With nothing to do, Li Yi began to examine the furnishings in Wang Anguo's office.

The office was small, and the layout was quite simple. Aside from a desk and a small set of sofas, there was only a wooden cabinet used for books and documents.

Suddenly, Li Yi's attention was caught by a photograph on the desk.

It was a family portrait of three people—two adults and a child, presumably Wang Anguo, his wife, and their child.

What caught Li Yi's attention was not Wang Anguo, but the woman in the photo. He actually recognized her!

The woman's name was An Hong. In Li Yi's past life, she had been a formidable business rival. The two of them had fought each other for over a decade, and in the end, neither managed to knock the other down.

Li Yi had once sent people to investigate An Hong's background and learned that she was a martyr's widow who had raised her son alone after her husband died in the line of duty.

Later, the efficiency of An Hong's work unit plummeted, forcing her to enter the commercial world. Relying on her own capabilities, she eventually rose step by step to become a billionaire businesswoman.

Yet, no matter how hard he tried to imagine it, Li Yi never expected that An Hong was actually Wang Anguo's wife. What a small world!

And he had accidentally saved his old rival's husband. What a twist of fate!

At the same time, a serious problem occurred to Li Yi!

In his previous life, An Hong only entered the business world because her husband died in the line of duty, her work unit went downhill, and she was laid off, leaving her with no other choice.

But in this lifetime, not only did Wang Anguo survive, judging by the current situation, he was likely to advance even further. If that happened, even if An Hong were laid off, she would not be driven by poverty.

Under such circumstances, would she still enter the business world like she did in his past life?

Furthermore, there seemed to be strict regulations prohibiting the spouses and family members of public servants from engaging in business. With An Hong's current status, she was indeed unsuited for commerce!

Could it be that he had just inadvertently eliminated his greatest future competitor?

If that were truly the case, then this joke was getting way out of hand!

Just as Li Yi was deep in thought, the office door suddenly pushed open, and Wang Anguo strode in from outside.

Seeing Li Yi, he immediately smiled and said, "Brother Li, sorry to keep you waiting so long!"

"Haha, it's nothing. If it weren't for Captain Wang, I might have been locked up in the interrogation room by now!" Li Yi said with a smile.

After the two sat down across the desk from each other, Wang Anguo said with a grateful expression, "Brother Li, I really have to thank you for this matter. If it weren't for you, not only would I be in deep trouble, but everyone in the county bureau would also face reprimands from above!"

"This has nothing to do with me. I merely provided you with a new line of thought. All the credit belongs to you and your team!"

Hearing this, Wang Anguo instantly understood and burst into hearty laughter, "Understood, understood!"

Then, Wang Anguo continued, "By the way, Brother Li, I already checked on your situation with Lao Zhao earlier. It's a minor matter! I've already spoken with him, and we'll let this go!"

"Then I truly appreciate it!" Li Yi said.

"Brother Li, there's something I can't quite figure out. With your abilities, you could easily find a proper job in an official unit. Why bother with small peddling?"

Li Yi smiled and asked, "Do you look down on people who do business?"

"Not at all, but you know what the current environment is like. It's really not suited for doing business!"

"Hehe, would you believe me if I told you the state will soon lift these restrictions and even encourage the individual economy?" Li Yi said.

"There have been rumors to that effect, but after all..."

Before Wang Anguo could finish, Li Yi interrupted him, "Captain Wang, you know my capabilities. If I say the state will lift the restrictions on the individual economy, it definitely will. By then, entering the business world will become a social trend!"

"And I am merely stepping ahead of others to prepare for the commercial tide in advance, nothing more!"

Originally, Wang Anguo wanted to refute, but thinking of Li Yi's unfathomable abilities, the words on the tip of his tongue ultimately remained unspoken.

"Brother Li, will the authorities really issue orders to allow the individual economy to exist?"

"Yes, and it will be implemented very soon. We just need to sit tight and wait for the news!" Li Yi said.

"Alright, then I understand!"

Wang Anguo then continued, "I've already spoken with the public security brigade, telling them that you are an informant for our criminal police team and that running a small stall is just a cover for gathering intelligence. They won't make things difficult for you in the future!"

Hearing this, Li Yi almost burst out laughing. That excuse was pure nonsense!

If someone said this a decade or so later, it would indeed hold water.

After all, streets would be filled with small vendors by then, and blending into such a crowd to gather simple intelligence would be somewhat plausible.

But right now? There were hardly any street vendors in the entire city. Every single person setting up a stall was glaringly conspicuous—what kind of secret intelligence agent was that?

"Will that really work?"

"Of course it will! Besides, you did help us crack two major cases. My explanation holds up just fine."

"If you say it works, then it works, as long as you don't haul me in at every turn!" Li Yi said with a smile.

"Hahaha, we won't, not anymore!"

"By the way, have those human traffickers all been caught?" Li Yi asked abruptly.

"They're all caught, not a single one got away!"

"And the children?"

"They've all been rescued too. Aside from a few sent to the hospital for treatment due to illness, the rest only suffered some fright. Nothing serious!" Wang Anguo replied.

"That's good!"

Li Yi then added, "As for those traffickers, you must dig deeper into their backgrounds. Every single one of them is a heinous fiend. Interrogate them thoroughly, and you might just unearth some unexpected surprises!"

Li Yi knew quite well that quite a few members of this gang were desperate criminals with blood on their hands, and some were even wanted names on the Ministry of Public Security's rolls.

If all of those cases were dug up, it would be a massive contribution!

Hearing this, Wang Anguo's eyes lit up with delight, and he immediately said, "Hahaha, then we must dig deep. We can't let those bastards slip through the cracks!"

"Alright, if there's nothing else, I'll be heading back. I still have half of my cold skin noodles left unsold today, and we can't let them go to waste!" Li Yi said with a smile.

"Hahaha, they won't go to waste! The brothers and I have been busy catching people all day and haven't had lunch yet. We'll just buy you out!"

"That would be fantastic, hahaha!"

...